Olympic luger dead after high-speed track crash

Georgian luge hopeful Nodar Muaritashvili crashes during the men's Luge practise at the Whistler Sliding Centre, in preparation for the Vancouver Winter Olympics on February 12, 2010. Muaritashvili suffered a horror crash after flying off the Olympic track during his second of two training runs, reports said. He was immediately placed on a stretcher before he was taken away in an ambulance.PETER PARKS
/ AFP/Getty Images

Italy's Sandra Gasparini speeds down the track during a practice run for the women's singles luge during training ahead of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics in Whistler, British Columbia, February 11, 2010.Retuers
/ Times Colonist

WHISTLER, B.C. — The track on which a Georgian luger died in a fatal crash Friday is as much as 20 kilometres an hour too fast, an international sport official said Friday as Vancouver Winter Olympics officials launched a probe into the shocking accident which killed Nodar Kumaritashvili during a training run, only hours before the Games' opening ceremonies.

However, just hours after the RCMP and BC Coroners Service completed their investigation, the International Luge Federation and Vanoc announced late Friday night that the track will reopen and training runs will resume on Saturday.

The FIL's technical officials concluded that "there was no indication that the accident was caused by deficiencies in the track," leaving human error to blame.

"It appears after a routine run, the athlete came late out of curve 15 and did not compensate properly to make correct entrance into curve 16," read the statement released Friday night. "This resulted in a late entrance into curve 16 and although the athlete worked to correct the problem he eventually lost control of the sled resulting in the tragic accident."

However, the FIL did announce that the walls will be raised at the exit of curve 16 and the ice profile will be changed as a preventive measure.

Even before the accident several experts were critical of the track, and they were echoed following the crash of the 21-year-old luger.

"The track is too fast," Joseph Fendt, president of the World Luge Federation, told London's Daily Telegraph.

"We had planned it to be a maximum of 137 kilometres an hour, but it is about 20 km/h faster. We think this is a planning mistake."

The head of the Georgian Olympics delegation agreed.

"I don't know how he died but I can tell you one thing, the track was really very bad," Irakly Japaridze told the New York Times.

Kumaritashvili was taken to hospital Friday after a crash that saw him fly off the track near the bottom of the course at the Whistler. He died in hospital.

The fatal crash occurred near the bottom of the course.

Kumaritashvili hit the track's inside wall, flew up in the air and over the outside wall and struck the girder. His speed was estimated at 144 kilometres per hour.

Medical staff were on the scene and applied CPR. Kumaritashvili was then taken to hospital by ambulance. Volunteers were in tears as medical staff worked on the luger.

At a packed and sombre news conference, an emotional Jacques Rogge, International Olympic Committee president, said an investigation had begun into the circumstances around the accident that killed Kumaritashvili.

"Sorry, it is a bit difficult to remain composed," he said as he started to speak. "This is indeed a sad day. I have no words to say."

"We are so heartbroken to be in this position," said John Furlong, the CEO of Vancouver Organizing Committee. "Our team has been devastated by this."

At the opening ceremony at BC Place Stadium, the Georgian team, wearing black arm bands, removed their hats and were greeted with a standing ovation from the crowd of 60,000-strong crowd. The team also was to place a black patch on the Georgian flag raised immediately following the parade of athletes. The Olympic and Canadian flags were lowered to half-mast and a minute's silence was observed.

The training run — the second of two scheduled for Friday and the final one before the event's scheduled start on Saturday — was suspended.

"All Canadians were deeply saddened to learn of the tragic death of Georgian Olympic team member Nodar Kumaritashvili . . . His competitive spirit and dedication to sports excellence will be remembered and honoured during the Games," Prime Minister Stephen Harper said in a media release.

"On behalf of all Canadians, Laureen and I send our deepest sympathies to Mr. Kumaritashvili's family and friends and the entire Georgian Winter Olympic team."

Kumaritashvili comes from the town of Borjomi.

He was coached by his father, Feliqs. He took part in five World Cup races this season and is 44th in the overall standings.

According to Olympic historian David Wallechinsky, Kumaritashvili is the sixth athlete to die while competing or training for competition at an Olympic Games.

During the Summer Games of 1912, Portuguese marathon runner Francisco Lazaro, 21, collapsed from sunstroke and heart trouble and died the next day.

In 1960, Danish cyclist Knut Jensen died during the Olympic road race as a result of ingesting amphetamines and nicotinyl tartrate, supposed performance boosters.

During the 1964 Innsbruck Olympics, Australian downhill racer Ross Milne, 19, was killed when he flew off the course during a training run and slammed into a tree. Just before those same games began, Polish-born British luger Kazimierz Kay-Skrzypeski was killed during a trial run on the Olympic course.

More recently, Swiss speed skier Nicolas Bochatay died in training during the 1992 Games in Albertville, France, when speed skiing was a demonstration sport.

Japaridze said the Georgian team was reconsidering its participation in the Games Friday night.

"We are all in deep shock, we don't know what to do. We don't know whether to take part in (Friday's) opening ceremony or even the Olympic Games themselves," he told the Times.

"Our first thoughts are with the family, friends and colleagues of the athlete. The whole Olympic family is struck by this tragedy, which clearly casts a shadow over these Games," said Rogge.

"We are deeply struck by this tragedy and join the IOC in extending our condolences to the family, friends and teammates of this athlete, who came to Vancouver to follow his Olympic dream," said Furlong.

Fendt said: "This is a terrible accident. This is the very gravest thing that can happen in sport, and our thoughts and those of the luge family are naturally with those touched by this event."

The head coach of Canada's luge team said he was devastated.

"It's terrible. I'm in shock and I can't really say anything right now," said Wolfgang Staudinger. "This is the first time I've seen this (a death). It's very sad.

"I want to meet with my team before I say anything more."

This track had been a challenge. Shortly before the crash, American luger Bengt Walden, who had just crashed in his run, said that IFL officials had already expressed concerns about the speed of the track.

"I don't think they're going to build more faster tracks than this," he said when asked if this one was at the outer limit of how fast a track can be. "The (federation) was almost unhappy with how fast the track turned out to be but we'll see."

Moments later, Kumaritashvili crashed.

Italy's Armin Zoeggeler, the 2002 and 2006 Olympic champion, crashed in his first run Friday but wasn't hurt. His sled seemed to slide from beneath him on Corner 11 and he slid for about 200 metres. He was able to hold his sled to keep it from crashing into his body. He did his second run and seemed fine.

The announcement cast a pall over the last hours before the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics. What was supposed to be a happy day marking the start of 17 days of competition turned has turned bleak, even as thousands of people turned out in Vancouver to watch the last day of the Olympic torch relay.

Rogge was scheduled to hold a closing news conference marking the end of the 122nd Olympic session, where the IOC debated many sport issues. But Kumaritashvili's horrific crash, captured on video and film, quickly derailed the conference.

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